WEST SENECA, N.Y. (WKBW) — Hundreds of people have been making their way to their county clerk's office to get their hands on a pistol permit. Many hoping to avoid the new conceal carry restrictions set to take place.
"My mom needs to get the permit for my grandfather has a bunch of firearms so if he ends up passing, nobody will get them," said Orion Dillon, who waited in line overnight. "So, my mom's getting the permit so we don't lose thousands of dollars worth of firearms."
But on Wednesday, Governor Kathy Hochul said if you don't have your permit completed by September 1st, you're already to late. Governor Hochul said most applications take months and even years to process if there is a back log.
"That won't make a difference because it's who has a permit on the date, not that you've applied," said Governor Hochul.
Beginning on September 1st, filers will face increased background checks, required extended gun safety training and they will now have to renew their permit every three years instead of five years. 7 news reached out to Governer Hochul's office to get clarification on what this new deadline means for all of the applications that are in progress, and is waiting to hear back. Another addition to these new restrictions is a list of sensitive locations that prohibits all concealed carry weapons regardless of permit status.
"These sensitive locations include schools, colleges, day cares, libraries and restaurants that serve alcohol," said Governor Hochul.
Times Square is also on the list of sensitive locations. The penalty for breaking these new restrictions result in a felony.
More information on the new restrictions can be found here:
New Concealed Carry Restrictions
